Seven leading Japanese seafood companies have launched the Japan Responsible Seafood Roundtable to tackle procurement sustainability challenges.
Kyokuyo, Marubeni Seafoods Corporation, Maruha Nichiro, Mitsubishi, Nichirei, Nissui, and Seven & I Holdings launched the roundtable during the Sustainable Seafood Summit, which took place recently in Osaka, Japan. Tokyo-based Seafood Legacy spearheaded the move, which it said will foster collaboration across the seafood industry in Japan.
“As a seafood and food manufacturer, Nissui is committed to fulfilling its responsibility to pass on the bounty of the oceans to future generations by practicing sustainable procurement,” Nissui Sustainability Department General Manager Akihiko Nishi said in a release. "We expect this Roundtable to serve as a platform for cross-sector collaboration, generating concrete actions to address key challenges and creating a new trend in responsible seafood distribution.”
The seven member companies are in a strong position to take action, given their status as some of the largest seafood companies in the world. Based on revenue estimates, Mitsubishi, Marubeni, and Maruha Nichiro are among the top five seafood companies in the world, and Kyokuyo and Nissui are both in the top 20.
Seafood Legacy said the new initiative is needed to tackle the sustainability challenges facing the seafood supply chain, including environmental and human rights issues.
“Companies handling seafood are increasingly expected to adopt ‘responsible procurement’ practices,” Seafood Legacy said. “However, many challenges cannot be resolved by individual companies alone. In response, leading Japanese seafood companies have come together to establish this roundtable as a collaborative framework.”
The roundtable has three main objectives: establishing consistency in human rights due diligence systems and practices, consistency in environmental due diligence and practices, and joint efforts to address interoperable seafood traceability.
“Seafood is a vital protein source that consumers greatly value, yet the industry faces difficult issues including IUU fishing, the establishment of traceability, and human rights violation risks,” Maruha Nichiro Sustainability Department General Manager Yusuke Sato said. “To solve these challenges, it is essential for companies that share a commitment to responsible procurement to think, discuss, and act together in a non-competitive framework. Maruha Nichiro looks forward to working with our peers through this roundtable to take on these difficult issues, co-create solutions, and realize sustainable and responsible seafood procurement.”
The roundtable formally began activities in October and has begun working on a common set of guiding principles that it plans to develop in 2026, Seafood Legacy said.
“Through the launch of the Responsible Seafood Procurement Roundtable, Seafood Legacy is committed to supporting Japanese companies in driving tangible progress toward responsible and sustainable seafood supply chains,” Seafood Legacy Executive Vice President Aiko Yamauchi said.
